Continuous wool scouring apparatus



May 30, 1950 G. c. wElNPl-:Lr

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A CONTINUOUS woor. scoURING APPARATUS Filed Jan. 24, 1947 5 sheets-sheet 5 *n in @ma QU l a l@ .affam- Patented .May 30, 1950 l UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE i cos'rmuons wortsosrmmo APPARATUS i I George Charles Weinpel, (im N. J., aasienor to Botany Worsted Mills, poration of New Jersey` l c, N. J., a cor- Applleation Januar! 24, 1947. Serial No. 724.204

The object ofthe present invention is to provide an apparatus for wool scouring which will greatly reduce the damaging chemical and mechanical effect upon the wool bythe processes andV apparatus generally in use, which will reduce the production of noilage, .and which will result in a greater recovery of wool grease and its valuable consituents. By means of my apparatus the wool may have a markedly lower over-all alkalinity treatment than heretofore and yet with improved scouring, so that the wool treated by the process is superior. Furthermore, an increased rate of scouring is obtained, since the time of treatment in the successive bowls is substantially reduced.

'I'he invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. in which. l

Fig. 1 is a view in elevation showing an initial scouringl bowl and certain devices operatively appurtenant thereto part of a succeeding bowl being shown.

' Fig. la is a. plan view of the structure shown in Fig. l.

Fig. 2 is a continuation of the assembly shown in Fig. 1, and in elevation.

Fig. 2a is a plan view of the assembly shown in Fig. 2, but partly broken away.

Fig. 3 is a continuation of the assembly shown in Fig. 2, and in elevation. Y

`Fig. 3a is a plan view of the assembly 1n Fis. 3.

Fig. 4 is a view in elevation `showing `theassem bly of wash liquor treatment and grease recovery shown include a wool delivery device 2 into which the raw wool is fed from a chute 3, the wool being carried upwardly by a spiked apron I and brushed oil' by a rotating member 5, the wool being dropped to the chute-like end 2a: of the delivery device and thence delivered to tray 6 at the bottom of which is an apron I which carries the wool to a compartmentized rotary drum B from which the measured wool is dumped onto a pin-carrying open mesh or chain conveyor belt I in bowl I.

Near the bottom of bowl I is a screen 9 and running parallel therewith is the lower length of the belt I0. This belt, as shown in Fig. 5, carries transverse rows of wool-feed pins I I. On its lower length the belt pins project downwardly close to the screen 9, andthe belt is driven at synchronous speed with the drum 8 and moves to the left oi Fig. 1 over a `driving sprocket or drum I2, thence horizontally to a guide pulley I3, thence out of the bowl and above the same, over spaced guide pulleys Il, and thence by downwardly inclined arrangement it passes into the bowl and under a guide pulley I5 to form the lower horizontal belt length The .section oi the belt led out of the bowl lat y its rear dumps the wool upon a compartmentized drum 8x which in turn discharges the wool into a second bowl la: which is of the same construction as the rst bowl and hence the elements thereof` are given the same numerals in the draw ings.

Each of the bowls I and Ia: is provided, below screen 9, with a plurality of triangular hoppers I6, and at the base of each hopper is a displacement pumpil connected by a pipe IBI to a manifold I8 at the top of a settling tank 20. The man? ifold I9 discharges into a depending pipe 2| onto a deflection plate 22 and the rising liquid is subjected to the action of a plurality oi batiies 2i within the settling tank. and in this manner the heaviersediment tends to drop to the base of the `bowl to be drawn off by a valve controlled discharge conduit 24.

When the wool reaches the horizontal length of feed belt I0 at the discharge end of tank I, and also at the discharge end of bowl I, it receives a spray of hot wash water or liquor from a spray device 25, and the action of the latter is supplemented by a suction trough 26 which lies immediately below the belt, so that part of the wash liquor carried upward by the wool, and the rinse water or liquor is drawn into the suction trough from which it is pumped by pump 2l. as to each bowl i and Im, to the manifold I9 and hence to the settling bowl. Thus the hot spray and suction devices 25, 2B serve to remove loose foreign matter in the wool delivered by bowl I to bowl Iz, and from `the wool delivered by the latter bowl to a succeeding bowl, the latter being hereinafter described as to its function and elements.

Variability in the amount of liquorI drawn o from each of the bowls I and In: is secured; because there is a variable displacement pump for each hopper. The liquor thus subjected to the action of the settling tank 20, the latter removing much of the foreign matter from the emulsiiled liquor containing the valuable wool tresse. is delivered to a surge tank 28 via pipe 28, the latter being valve-controlled. Well above the base of the surge tank is an outlet pipe 30 connected to a pump 3| by means of which the liquor may be pumped through a steam jacketed temperature control unit 32 which may receive and discharge circulated steam or hot water via the pipes 33. The liquor is then drawn into a centrifugal extractor 34 by means of which a large percentage of dirt and foreign matter is removed and discharged into a pipe 35 which leads to a manifold pipe 36. rEhe latter also receives sediment from the surge tank 28 and the base of the latter may have connected thereto a pipe 35x controlled by a valve 31. it being preferred that a pump 38 be applied to pipe 35a', the latte discharging into manifold pipe 35. l

By this time the liquor is nearing a final cleansing, and is transferred by pipe 39 and branch pipes 4d to a plurality of precipitation or treatment tanks 4i, 42, 43. These tanks enable one tank of liquor to undergo treatment while one is being lled and while the treated liquor from a third tank is being led to a centrugal extractor or other device for further treatment. IThe liquor' in said treatment tanks 4l, l2 and t3, receive a suitable chemical precipitant and the foreign matter collected at the base of each tank may be removed from time to time. The branch pipes di) are controlled by valves itil and the treated liquor is discharged tmoiigh pipes d5, controlled by valves 46, to a pump di! which discharges into a centrifugal separator to for further dirt removal.

From the centrifugal unit it the liquor passes to a collection tank 49 from which it is pumped to a constant head tank 5@ which contains a heating coil 5| for maintaining the desired temperature. The constant head tank 5i] feeds to a set of centrifuges 5l which discharge the purifled and light wool grease with minor liquor to outlet pipe 52 which feeds into the lower level storage 'tank 54. The major volume of liquor and the small remaining dirt pass as tailings through pipes Sla: to a draw-olf manifold pipe 53.

The said tailings from the centrifuges 5i flow from pipe 53 to a set oi treatment tanks 55, 56 and 5l, the flow into these tanks being controlled by valves 58. These tanks may be used in the manner of tanks 4I to 43 inclusive, and by means of valve-controlled pipes the sediment from the two sets of tanks, that is to say set 4l to 43 and set 55 to 5l, may be drawn od to a discharge pipe 59. The sediment flow from tanks 4I to 43 is y via valve controlled pipes 59x.

It will be seen that the liquor led to the tanks 55 to 5l inclusive has been greatly cleansed and removed' of substantially all wool grease, and also that by settling, aided by a chemical precipitation, if necessary, the liquor will be clariiied and made excellent as scouring liquor. It `will also be seen that the said tanks may be selectively used in the transfer of scouring liquor to an appropriate bowl or bowls. This follows because there is provided for each tank 55, 56 and 51, a valve controlled discharge pipe 55:12, 56x or 512:, as the case may be, leading toa manifold conduit through which the scouring liquor may be pumped by pump Si to a jacketed heater 62 to which and from which a heating medium may be passed by pipes 53, the heated scouring liquor being led to a discharge pipe B4 and thence to feed or spray pipes 65 delivering to the tanks l and lz. Spray pipes are preferred and the spray will be delivered directly upon the woolin its movement along tbe top of the tanks. 'Ihe spray at 25 also may have at its source the liquor from one or all of the treatment tanks 55 to 51, in accordance with desired operation of control valves for said tanks.

In practice, one of the tanks 55. 56 or 51, will be employed for alkalinity control of the wash liquor led to tanks l, ix, although all three tanks may be so used.

It will be seen from the above that the wash liquor treatment and wool grease units above described are fed from the bi-unit bowl assembly I, iz. The function and appurtenant elements of the succeeding bowls will now be described.

Reference to Figs. 2, 2a, will show that bowl is.' discharges wool therefrom into a succeeding bowl 56. and that the latter discharges into a companion bowl 661:. These bowls and their appurtenant elements. including wool feeding means, sprays and suction devices, hopper-s.y

pumps and settling tank are of the same construction and arrangement as with bowls l, Ix and therefore the same reference numerals are used in the drawings.

The top discharge pipe 29 of the settling tank for bowl units 66, 66m will lead to the surge tank oi a wash liquor area treating and Wool grease recovery assembly the same as that of Fig. 5, and the operation is the same, so that further description is unnecessary.

Reference to Figs. 3, 3a, will show that bowl 66a: discharges wool therefrom to a loi-unit rinsing bowl assembly consisting of the bowls $1, 61x. These bowls also, and their appartenant elements, with the exception that they may omit a settling tank, are the same as with the preceeding bowls, and the same reference numerals are employed. At the discharge end of bowl 61x the cleansed wool will be led to a discharge conveyor indicated at 5S. A continuous flow of rinse water may be led to bowls 61, 61:1: via pipes 69, l0.

Raw Wool contains various foreign substances. such as dirt, particles of organic nitrates, vegetable matter including leaf and bur particles, sulfur and other chemical substances from sheep dip, etc. In the method of scouring commonly employed it has been considered necessary to employ a scouring bath or baths of relatively highV the forks against the wool on the screen whilstv the upper length acts as a return idler above the bath. The screen lies in the bath immediately below the moving wool in such generally used method, and periodically dirt and sediment is removed from the area below the screen. The wool is passed from one bath to another via squeeze rolls, and in a refinement it has been advocated that the wash liquor within the bowls be pumped from bowl to bowl in a direction reverse to the direction of travel of the wool with the object that a high proportion of the wool grease be carried back to the initial bowl and there discharged to a drain communicating with the upper area of the wash liquor. In all of the said present methods the wool is subjected for long periods to a high alkaline wash liquor, the

Il wool grease is permitted to build up in volume within the bath, there is a chemical edect on the wool which results in an average noilage of 12 to 15%a result which heretofore has been considered normally incident to wool scouring, the optimum good feel of the wool has not been maintained, the rate of scouring has been very slow as compared with that of my method, and the amount of soda ash and soap employed has been very much larger.

The method of operating my apparatus will now be described in particularity. Its characteristics are:

(a) Subjecting the raw wool initially and in progressive movement in an elongated path to a wash bath of high temperature, which may be 120-200 F., and thus higher than the maximum temperature of the method now in use, it preferably is at or near the upper limit, said bath is of neutral or very low alkalinity, the period of time, 5-15 minutes, being relatively short but suflicient to remove all but a minor proportion of the wool grease. Utilizing by the high heat of said initial bath the natural organic salts present in the wool, to act as detergents in releasing dirt and wool-foreign substances and to aid in releasing the wool grease. Separatelywithdrawing by pump force action, from a plurality of zones along the elongated path of the bath and at the base thereof, settled `dirt-andwool-grease-carry ing wash water.

By means of a plurality of settling and centrifugal-lter operations separately removing purified wool grease and clariiied wash liquor from the dirt and wool-foreign substances, and returning the claried Wash Water to and at the temperature of the bath, but usually at such higher temperature as to compensate, at least in part, for heat losses in the bath. subjecting the wool, thus removed of its major grease and much dirt, to a lower temperature similarly elongated bath of alkaline wash liquor, for a time equivalent to that of the rst bath and said alkaline bath may have a pH less than customarily employed for wool washing, a pH of 7.6-7.8 being operative, the operative temperature being 120- 150 F., and preferably at or toward the upper limit.

Withdrawing from separate zones of the said elongated alkaline bath area, and at the base thereof settled dirt-and-wool-grease-carrying wash liquor, and treating it separately from that of the first bath but in the manner of (c), the clarliied wash liquor being returned to the bath after adjustment-of its alkalinity.

subjecting the thus cleansed wool to a rinsing bath which may be of 110 F. Intermediate the washing zones, and also preliminary to rinsing, withdrawing the wet wool from its then bath and subjecting it to a hot wash spray and to suction, before it meets the succeeding bath. resulting in the removal of loose foreign matter, and the avoidance of squeeze rolls which induce noilage.

There is no intermittent plunging action of "aires on the wool as in the commonly used verti cal lift and drop rake feeds. The spaced transverse rows of pins in the conveyors are spaced in accordance with the compartments oi' the compartmentalized drums, and the drums and conveyors travel at the same speed so that as the wool is transferred from bowl to bowl it remains in its initial volume but in changed position for uniform scouring. The wool is base supported by the conveyors, not by the screens, the conveyors including open mesh wire cloth or equivalent elements, for such support. The feed is such that the movement of the wool is through the top portion only of each scouring bath, thus enabling ideal settling of sediment in a relatively undisturbed and deep area above the screen as well as in the hoppers below the screen.

In the above stated characteristics oi my method it should be understood that the initial bath comprises that of the first two 'bowls I, Ix, and the alkaline bath that of the two bowls 61, 61x. This enables continuous withdrawal of wool from the two zones of the initial bath ot highly heated wash liquor for spray washing and suction, and like withdrawal and action upon wool from the two zones of the second and "alkaline bath.

Having described my invention, what I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is as follows:

1. In apparatus for Wool scouring, a bow1 for wash liquor, a compartmentalized conveyor longitudinally extending in said bowl and adapted for free flow of wash liquor through its compartments, a compartmentalized feeder for discharging wool into the compartments of the conveyor. the feeding length of the latter being coniined to an upper area of the bowl whereby a lower area of the bowl is provided as an initial settling area, and a plurality of force feed means for withdrawing preliminary settled dirt-and-woolgrease-carrying wash liquor from a plurality of zones at the base of the bowl.

2. Apparatus for wool scouring constructed in accordance with claim 1, the conveyor having an upwardly extended feed length adapted to discharge into a second bowl, and wash spray and suction means adapted to provide a force ilow of wash liquor through the` wool passing in said upwardly extended length.

3. Apparatus for wool scouring constructed in accordance with claim l, the conveyor having an upwardly extended feed length adapted to discharge into a second bowl, a second conveyor in the said second bowl, and a plurality of force feed means for withdrawing settled dirt-andwool-grease-carrying wash liquor from a plurality of zones at the base of the said second bowl.

GEORGE CHARLES WEINPEL.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 419,331 Hodgson Jan. 14, 1890 579,581 Holmes Mar. 30, 1897 1,650,478 Wimberley Nov. 22, 1927 1,658,362 Walker Feb. 7, 1928 1,720,185 Miller July 9, 1929 1,820,334 Wiseman Aug. 25, `1931 1,920,469 Jones Aug. 1, 1933 2,228,017 Pecker Jan. 7, 1941 

